Do you know how you’ll respond in the face of armed robbers threatening you with deadly force? Having your Active Self Protection in place in advance can give you the advantage!

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What does this guard teach us about defending ourselves against armed robbers?

In any territorial or predatorial violence, the attacker gets to set the time and circumstances of the attack; these armed robbers show that nicely. They will almost always launch that attack from ambush, or as we like to call it in Umas, from “obscurity.” Surviving that ambush is one of the most important keys to successfully defending yourself.

If you do not have the attitude, skills, and plan to protect yourself from armed robbers, then your only option is to submit to their demands and hope it works out for the best. I would never suggest that a helpless person try to defend themselves against a carjacking or against armed robbers, though of course if it’s a matter of life and death you must do whatever you can. The point, though, is not to be a helpless victim! This is the heart of Active Self Protection, to motivate you to train and help you develop the attitude, skills, and plan so that you can choose to protect yourself if it makes sense in the moment rather than being forced into compliance with a violent felon.

If you have spiritual fitness by knowing what you’re willing to fight for and that you’re willing and ready to win the fight no matter what, you place yourself way ahead of most armed robbers. Attackers are looking for victims and not looking for fights, so many times when an intended victim puts up a significant fight they will disengage and find other prey. This makes sense even in the animal kingdom where we often see an apex predator disengage from feisty prey for fear of injury. Being ready to defend yourself is a key in self-defense because that defense will often cause the bad guy to run. This is part of why spiritual fitness is so important to self-defense.

Successful self-defense against armed robbers often involves a counter-ambush, where the victim finds the right opportunity to seize the initiative from the attacker and launch an ambush of their own. That involves thinking and knowing your own strengths and skill set, and being ready to strike the armed robbers when your opportunity for counter-ambush comes. It also means not allowing the attacker to see that attack until it’s launched.

Situational awareness is useful for more than seeing the attack coming, but also for knowing what is happening during the attack. In particular, if your awareness is strong you might get to see the armed robbers put their gun away to use both hands, or you might see that the robber’s gun malfunctions or is empty. The armed guard here waited until he knew the armed robbers were not paying attention to him. That information can give you the cue to act definitively to defend yourself by running or by counter-attacking the armed robber. This is not only why awareness is important, but knowledge of firearms and tools is as well!

There are 3 additional lessons for Patron Members and 3 class starters for Instructors from this armed robbery, so please join us in those programs to see them!

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